Refrigerator

• Main Authors: Soh, Jaehyun, Lee, Hangbok, Lee, Jaeyoul, Kim, Minsub, Son, Jungkyu, Kim, Nami, Suh, Eugene, Kim, Sangoh
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 05.05.2020
• Subjects: ARRANGEMENTS FOR MEASURING TWO OR MORE VARIABLES NOT COVEREDIN A SINGLE OTHER SUBCLASS; BLASTING; COFFEE MILLS; COLD ROOMS; COMBINED HEATING AND REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS; COOLING OR FREEZING APPARATUS NOT COVERED BY ANY OTHERSUBCLASS; DETAILS OF DOMESTIC STOVES OR RANGES, OF GENERAL APPLICATION; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; DOMESTIC WASHING OR CLEANING; FLEXIBLE MATERIALS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; FURNITURE; HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS; HEATING; HUMAN NECESSITIES; ICE-BOXES; LAUNDERING; LAUNDERING, DRYING, IRONING, PRESSING OR FOLDING TEXTILEARTICLES; LIGHTING; LIQUEFACTION SOLIDIFICATION OF GASES; MANUFACTURE OR STORAGE OF ICE; MEASUREMENT OF MECHANICAL VIBRATIONS OR ULTRASONIC, SONIC ORINFRASONIC WAVES; MEASURING; MEASURING NOT SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR A SPECIFIC VARIABLE; MEASURING OR TESTING NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; OTHER DOMESTIC STOVES OR RANGES; PAYING COUNTERS; PHYSICS; RANGES; REFRIGERATION OR COOLING; REFRIGERATORS; SPECIAL FURNITURE, FITTINGS, OR ACCESSORIES FOR SHOPS,STOREHOUSES, BARS, RESTAURANTS OR THE LIKE; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL; TARIFF METERING APPARATUS; TESTING; TEXTILES; TREATMENT OF TEXTILES OR THE LIKE; VENTILATING; WEAPONS

A refrigerator equipped with a door that becomes transparent as necessary to make the interior thereof visible is disclosed. The refrigerator includes a cabinet having a storage compartment defined therein, a lighting device for illuminating the interior of the storage compartment, a door, which is hingedly coupled to the cabinet to open and close the storage compartment, and has an opening and a panel assembly including a front panel disposed on the front surface thereof, a sensor for detecting sound waves, which are generated by a knock input applied to the door and are transmitted through the front panel, and a controller for controlling the lighting device to allow light to be transmitted through the panel assembly, thus making the storage compartment visible from outside the door through the opening when a predetermined knock input is detected.